The state of Washington has effectively abolished its long-standing residency requirement for voter registration.
Article VI, Section 1 of the Washington Constitution mandated that a person must be a resident of the state for 30 days before the election to register to vote.
The Washington State Alliance for Retired Americans filed a lawsuit in November 2023, arguing that this requirement was in violation of the U.S. Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1970, which prohibits residency requirements for federal elections.
The lawsuit claimed that this "Pre-election durational residency requirement" - which voters must attest to satisfying on voter registration forms - "Is longer than the registration deadline andtherefore prevents voters who could otherwise lawfully register and cast ballots from doing so just because they moved into the state, county or precinct too recently." The plaintiff contends that Washington's durational residency requirement disenfranchises voters who move to the state or within the state fewer than 30 days before Election Day.
As a result, these individuals are barred from voting in the upcoming election and cannot elect state or local officials who would represent their current residence.
In response, the state Legislature passed Senate Bill 6021 in 2018, allowing voters to register as late as 8 p.m. on Election Day.
Despite the constitutional mandate, the Secretary of State's rulemaking session on June 25 adopted the change, eliminating the need for voters to attest to a 30-day residency.
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